[Radial augmentation index is associated with cardiovascular risk and arterial stiffness].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether radial augmentation index (AI) associates with cardiovascular risk as well as arterial stiffness.

METHODS: A total of 4985 subjects, 2417 men and 2568 women, aged 18 - 96 (50.9 ± 14.7) years, were recruited. AI was measured in the left radial artery using tonometry Colin HEM-9000AI. Carotid-femoral PWV (CFPWV) and carotid-radial PWV (CRPWV) were examined by automatic pulse wave velocity (PWV) measuring system. Framingham risk score and Chinese ischemic cardiovascular disease risk score were applied upon subjects without cardiovascular disease to calculate individual cardiovascular risk respectively.

RESULTS: Radial AI (rAI) was significantly higher in women than in men[ (83.18 ± 12.36)% vs (71.93 ± 15.22)%, P < 0.01]. Simple correlation analysis showed rAI was significantly correlated to two cardiovascular risk scores or CFPWV and CRPWV. After adjusted for multi-factors, rAI was still significantly correlated to Framingham risk score or Chinese ischemic cardiovascular disease risk score (r = 0.17 and 0.12) in men respectively (P < 0.05), while r were 0.09 and 0.08 in women respectively (P < 0.05). In multivariate analysis, there was a significant association between CFPWV and rAI (r = 0.14 in men, r = 0.10 in women, P < 0.01), whereas the relation ship between CRPWV and rAI was not found. The relationship between rAI and cardiovascular risk or PWV became weaker for those aged above 50 years.

CONCLUSION: Augmentation index might be a useful marker of cardiovascular risk and arterial stiffness, which could be more feasible for younger subjects as a tool for risk differentiation.